“They deserve it more than anyone else” – Pedri names 2 players he voted for to become next Barcelona captain
Barcelona midfielder Pedri recently shared that he voted for Frenkie de Jong and Ronald Araujo to become the club's next captain.
Sergi Roberto was recently announced as the new captain of the Catalan club. This comes following the departures of Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba and Gerard Pique's retirement last summer.
Pedri has named the two players he would have liked to become the next captain as the midfielder said (via Barca Universal):
"Barça's new captains? I voted for Frenkie and Araujo. They deserved it more than anyone else. They have been at the club for many years and I think they show the image that a captain should give."
Since joining the Blaugrana from Ajax in 2019, De Jong has been a key player for the La Liga giants, making 183 appearances for the club. The Dutch midfielder has scored 15 goals and has provided 21 assists so far for the team.
Araujo, on the other hand, has been a mainstay in Barcelona's defense in recent years. He joined the La Liga giants from Boston River in 2018 and has since made 113 senior appearances for the club.
Both De Jong and Araujo have been named among the captains following Roberto and Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Given Pedri's importance in the team as a player, it won't be surprising to see him wear the armband in the coming years either. The 20-year-old, though, is perhaps too young to take such a responsibility at the moment.
Barcelona youngster Julian Araujo has joined Las Palmas
Barcelona secured the signing of Mexican full-back Julian Araujo from LA Galaxy in the January 2023 transfer market. Despite a delay in paperwork, his signing was approved.
The Catalan club, however, were not sanctioned to field Araujo for the first team and he spent the remainder of the 2022-23 season with the academy team. Araujo has now sealed a loan move to Las Palmas.
Speaking about the transfer, the youngster said (via AS):
“I know that the model of play is similar to that of Barça. I spoke to Xavi and he said that this was the best option. He told me that the coach [García Pimienta] likes to play, he likes to have the ball, he likes to play with the full-backs and I was convinced that this was the place.”
While Araujo is a player with potential, he lacks experience in European football. Hence, the full-back could return after gaining some much-needed experience and become a key player for Barcelona in the future.